The Uninvited Guests
by jaguar66
Summary: When uninvited guests gatecrash a conciliatory party for a bored Steven, a surprising turn of events take place. There are many unexpected fusions and the Crystal Gems face a challenging adversary. (This is my first fanfic btw, please check it out!)
1. A Last Minute Party

If Garnet were asked about what happened, she would look away and mutter slightly defensively, 'I knew it would happen'.

If Amethyst was asked, she would burst into a fit of giggles, calm down, then burst into giggles again until you asked someone else.

If Pearl was asked, a blush would colour her cheeks and she'd look everywhere and anywhere but your general direction, mumbling under her breath.

If Peridot was asked, she would frown and jut her chin out in a defiant manner, then ask if what had happened was a human custom that she should have known about.

If Mr and Dr Maheswaran were asked, had they known, they would immediately break into a lecture about the dangers and consequences of their actions and ground anyone and everyone, no matter if they _could_ ground them, for 20 years.

If Gregg Universe was asked, he would not answer because he wouldn't be able to hear you with his music blaring in the background as he created songs while the inspiration and the recent events stayed fresh in his mind.

If Steven was asked, his eyes would immediately light up and sparkle and, in a reverent tone with barely contained exaltation, exaggerate the story so much until it was distorted completely and the true story would be lost in flames, explosions and glitter.

To find out what truly happened while staying somewhat on topic, you had to ask Connie, but she had to go home early so you wouldn't know the full story.

So, there was really only one gem left to ask, and that was Lapis Lazuli. Except, she was on the other side of the universe, fearfully cowering and sulking in her barn that she had taken from Earth.

Besides, even if anyone had given the full story, it was so strange and confusing that no one would have been able to provide a consistent explanation, and would fall into a mature and serious and not-at-all-childish 'debate' on who was right.

The aftermath was certainly damaging enough, the sand pockmarked with giant holes and glass, the temple barely holding together with cracks running along its stony surface and not one, but _two_ giant ship sunken a little ways away from the shore.

So what had happened to cause such a stir? It all started on one warm morning…

* * *

The sun was shining hot in the sky above them, with a cool breeze wafting along the beach, the temple sitting lazily against the giant cliff and overlooking the relatively calm ocean.

Steven slumped against a stone hand that was randomly jutting out of the sand. In front of him, Garnet and Pearl were building a sand castle so big and grand, it looked like it belonged in a fairytale. Amethyst was napping on a blanket nearby, soaking up the heat that the sun offered.

It was a rare, peaceful afternoon and Steven knew that he SHOULD have been enjoying it, and he SHOULD have been grateful for at least one day without fear of the diamonds crushing their tranquillity and planet, but there was only one thing that was running through his mind, and that was…

'I'm bored.'

At first, he said it slowly, as if he was testing his words out, but when no diamonds suddenly warped onto the beach, guns blazing, he relaxed and repeated his statement more confidently.

'I'm bored.' A pause, then: 'I'm bored, I'm bored, I'm bored, bored, bored!'

He groaned and jumped to his feet. Mind racing, he tried to think of something to entertain himself with. His gaze ran along the beach, snagging on some rocks and seagulls that lay about on the sand. He whirled around, looking for something to do, when his eyes landed on a strangely misshapen rock sticking out of the wet sand that had a striking resemblance to Peridot. However, when a wave washed over it and it disappeared, Steven shrugged and went back to looking around. He knew how hard it would be to find objects lost at sea from when the crystal gems had spent weeks searching for Malachite and knew he stood no chance, especially with his inability to breathe underwater.

That strangely misshapen rock had actually indeed been Peridot. Thanks to the relative peace that had fallen over the beach, Peridot had decided to use this as a chance to record the strange happenings of the human race. She had extensive knowledge of all things gems, and could recite the gem code in her sleep, backwards, 'thou shalt not fuse with other gems, thou shalt not crack other gems, thou shalt remain forever loyal and subservient to thy diamonds, thy grand and supreme rulers…'. However, when she had arrived on Earth, she found herself falling further and further away from the prideful knowledge she had built up about her homeworld and became conscious of the depth of ignorance she had concerning her immediate surroundings, namely the humans.

This had prompted her to start making and recording observations on the recording device given to her by Steven. Since her valuable meep morps had been taken away by Lapis, Peridot had found herself with an abundant amount of time, especially on this quiet day and had decided to follow up on her previous vow and observe Steven, who she thought was a prime example of the human species. Of course, it was not at all because she was just bored and felt a little neglected after Lapis's departure. Yes, it was only because she wanted to have a more widespread knowledge about humans.

Anyway, Peridot had followed (read: stalked) Steven all morning and had so far found not a lot to comment on. All Steven had done was walk around the beach and sit on the sand. Peridot was becoming restless (read: bored) and had almost been caught as a result. She was grateful to the waves and resolved to give it a present later, as customary in human tradition when thankful for something. When Peridot looked to Steven again after giving a quick, but deep bow to the ocean, she saw that something had caught his eye.

Another perusal of the sandy expanse found Steven an abandoned volleyball that had somehow rolled off the cliff, bounced down the temple and lurched to a stop just before his feet. His mind was still marvelling at the incredible journey the volleyball must have taken to get to this spot and the extraordinarily small chances of it coming before him, so it took a moment for him to realise the golden opportunity that it presented. A short squeal later had all of the crystal gems' eyes on him. Another dozen or so squeals with lots of bouncing up and down later, Steven finally got ready to explain his idea.

'Guys! I just had the best idea! What if…' Steven dragged out the 'if' in what he hoped was a suspenseful pause, but quickly continued when the gems just stared at him blankly, '…we had a beach party!'

He held out the ball as if saying 'ta-da!' and looked expectantly at their faces. When none of them reacted immediately, Steven's faced drooped slightly. Thanks to the gems' amazing observational skills, they saw Steven's mood change for the worse. They reacted immediately.

'Oh no, Steven, we'd LOVE to have a beach party, wouldn't we, _Amethyst._ ' Pearl was the first to react and discreetly nudged (read: kicked) Amethyst in the ribs to get her to play along.

' _Oh_ ,' a grunt escaped Amethyst but she quickly caught on and said, if a little strained, 'Oh, yeah, definitely, we should totally have a... beach party! When do you want it, Steven? Tomorrow? Next week?'

Steven shook his head twice, 'I want one _now_!'

Pearl spluttered, her eyes widening in shock, 'But- but- we can't have one _now_! Garnet, tell him!'

Garnet simply 'hmm'ed noncommittally. When it was apparent Garnet wasn't going to say anything, Pearl whipped her head back to Steven. She seemed to have recovered from her initial shock and took calm, relaxing breaths.

'Steven, I know you are bored, I know there hasn't been much activity lately, but we can't become complacent! For all we know, the diamonds might be on their way to Earth right now! Then who knows what would happen to us!' she said soothingly, albeit a little hysterically.

* * *

Somewhere on a ship a few star systems away, Yellow Diamond sneezed vehemently. She was confused, what was a sneeze? A quick check of her gem showed her no cracks, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

'Get back to your work!' she yelled when she caught the look on her Pearl's face.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Steven stood stubbornly against Pearl's frantic persuasion. Amethyst, on the other hand, was warming up to Pearl's frazzled state.

'Yeah, Pearl, let's have a party. Why would the diamonds be on their way to Earth now? We should just let loose and relax for a bit! All of this waiting around's made me hungry. We can, like, celebrate not being destroyed! Or Steven's birthday in five months,' internally, Amethyst laughed when Pearl visibly became more flustered.

* * *

In the menagerie, Blue Diamond sneezed, then continued crying.

* * *

In a last feeble attempt to dissuade Steven, Pearl waved offhandedly, but elegantly, to the sand castles behind her, 'We- we were making our sand castles though!'

There was a long pause. Even Pearl cringed at her own weak excuse.

'Ugh fine,' Pearl acquiesced with crossed arms and an unladylike snort. A small smile played about her lips, however, when she saw Steven's obvious delight.


	2. The First Fusion

**A/N: Sorry guys, it's a bit slow at this moment, but I swear it'll** ** _really_** **pick up later. I just need to set the mood you know? Can't jump into things just yet. And thank you to everyone who read my fanfiction! Especially those who followed/favourited me. It made my day. I promise it will be a really fun read. 100% money back guaranteed (can't say the same about time though).**

A few hours later, Steven stood in the middle of the newly transformed beach. Christmas lights were scattered liberally across the sand, reminiscent of Steven's style. Streamers were strung about in an elaborate and complex pattern that spoke of elegance and intricacy. Assorted snacks were piled on top of the plastic table that stood to the side. In the middle of the beach, a volleyball net had been set up.

Steven stood on the sand and appraised the set up critically. With a serious look in his eyes, he gave one approving nod. He turned around when he heard footsteps coming up behind him and smiled beatifically when he realised it was Connie.

'Hey, Connie! I'm glad you could make it to our beach party at such short notice. As you can see, we were thinking of playing volleyball first.' Steven waved to the volleyball net.

'Hey Steven, of course I would make it. But who would we play with? We, or at least I, am no match against the _Crystal Gems_.' Connie said, flicking her eyes to the three figures making their way across the sand.

'Oh no, silly, by ourselves we may stand to lose, but together, we totally have at least a one percent chance of winning!' Steven had started with a dramatic pose, staring into the distance but he turned to waggishly grin at her towards the end.

'Oh, you mean you want to fuse. Okay, sure. With that, I'm sure we won't lose as badly.' Connie bobbed her head amenably, with a slight competitive edge underlying her voice despite her words.

The gems finally made their way to Steven and Connie. 'Garnet and Pearl, you can be on one team, and Amethyst and Stevonnie, once we fuse, can be on the other.'

A few minutes and one fusion later, both teams were eyeballing each other through the holes in the volleyball net. Amethyst and Stevonnie looked to each other. 'We've got this in the bag,' said Amethyst with a wry and confident twist to her mouth.

Stevonnie simply nodded her head in determination. Then, in a louder voice, Stevonnie announced, 'Let the games… BEGIN!'

Garnet nodded and served the ball. It flew so hard and fast to the spot behind Stevonnie that she could barely see it and Amethyst, thanks to her greater experience, managed to dive and knock it upwards at a much slower pace. Stevonnie, quickly catching on, seized the moment to send a hard spike back to the opposition. Pearl looked up, and with determination glinting in her eyes and an incredibly elegant twist, she spun upwards and delivered a hard blow to ball straight back at Stevonnie, who was now considerably more prepared than before.

And so the game continued.

The scores were quite even, with Garnet and Pearl slightly ahead thanks to Garnet's future vision. However, Stevonnie and Amethyst's unpredictability was difficult to foresee and they used this to their fullest degree.

2 hours later, they were neck and neck in the last game. It was the tiebreaker. The sun had gone down quite a bit and could no longer be seen over the cliffs. Around the court, deep holes had been gouged into the sand with shards of glass protruding out thanks to the incredible amount of force that had been behind every single hit. Due to safety reasons, Stevonnie had taken to wearing rubber thongs that Pearl had created from her pearl. After all, she was still three-quarters human.

Eyes narrowed in concentration, sweat gleaming, Stevonnie struggled to catch her breath as she got ready to serve.

'You can do this, Stevonnie, I believe in you.' said Steven within their shared mind space.

Stevonnie took a deep breath and propelled the ball into the air. Then, somehow, instead of solidly hitting the ball with the side of her fist, it slipped off her skin, grazing it instead of being whacked by it. The force of her swing allowed the ball to fly into the air, but with none of the power that she had intended. This resulted in a fairly slow pass that was at just the right angle for Garnet to slam it straight back down just on the other side of the net, making it impossible for Amethyst or Stevonnie to hit it back, and an extra large glass crater to boot.

It was Garnet and Pearl's victory.

There was a pause and everyone was speechless. Stevonnie groaned and slumped her shoulders. This snapped everyone out of their strange silence and Amethyst burst out laughing.

'Man, did you see that serve? That was so funny!' she started rolling around on the sand, glass included, cackling to the sky.

'Stevonnie, that was an impressive game. Amethyst, please stop laughing so much,' but it was clear Pearl was struggling to stop her chuckles herself, if the way her shoulders shook was anything to go by.

Garnet seemed a little more composed, though her mouth was still turned up at the corners in what could have been amusement. 'Well done Stevonnie, both of you proved quite a challenge.'

All the while, Peridot was happily writing down her observations.

Stevonnie grumbled but brightened up when she remembered the next part of their party.

'Now, it's time for the dancing!' Stevonnie ran to the radio and pressed a few buttons. One of Steven's dad's songs started playing. Then, she pressed the on button for the Christmas lights and the whole beach lit up. It was stunning, and Stevonnie took a moment to admire the scene. It was then that Greg Universe drove into the beach, and parked his van near the heart of the party. Coincidentally, his song 'Let Me Drive My Van (Into Your Heart)' was playing on the radio.

A sound like a popping tire and air whooshing out filled the evening between a pause in the songs as Greg inevitably ran over a glass filled hole. Then, a yell and a muffled curse. Stevonnie remained happily oblivious of the latter as another song started playing.

The Crystal Gems grimaced and started clearing away the glass. Five minutes later, they were ready to dance.

Stevonnie had a quick mental conversation. They both unanimously agreed that it would be better if they unfused. Steven led a now separated Connie to the snacks table.

'I'm staaaarviiiiing…' said Steven as his stomach let out a big rumble, 'All that running around has made me so hungry.'

He inspected the food carefully before settling on a packet of chaaaaps. He then turned to Connie, offering her some.

'Sorry Steven, do you know how many carbohydrates are in that thing? Enough to give you type 2 diabetes, cholesterol and obesity to name a few. I think it's really unhealthy, so I'll pass. Not to mention, my mum would kill me if she saw what I was eating.'

Steven looked at Connie with betrayal shining in his eyes, 'But Connie…it's Chaaaaps!' He sighed and lowered his eyes to the chips packet in his hands, 'Not everyone can appreciate the taste and texture of this exquisite creation…I guess it requires a refined taste.' He continued eating.

Meanwhile, out on the dance floor, things were getting heated. It seemed the Crystal Gems were having some sort of dance off. It wasn't official of course, but the dance moves kept getting flashier and more ostentatious. It seemed like their movements defied physics. Take Pearl for example; her technique, form, elegance were all the pinnacle of perfection, as she pirouetted for 3 minutes without stopping or slowing and ended it with a high mid-air twirl that seemed to hover for far longer than was humanly possible. Which was entirely possible because she wasn't human anyway.

Garnet, with a content smile on her face, swayed her hips and punched her arms to the beat, then spun in random and erratic directions so fast she almost seemed to blur, with her heavy gauntlets providing momentum and force.

Amethyst ran her hands up her body and over her hair, flipping it, while her hips undulated to the beat. Her shoulders swung from side to side as her small form rippled and flowed smoothly.

The atmosphere got to such a high fervour, Steven immediately wanted to join in. He ran to the Crystal Gems, essentially leaving Connie behind and jumped into the rhythm. He started dancing wildly, stomping his feet and swinging his arms to the beat. Connie smiled at his uncontrolled movements and decided to take a break rather than join him. She was only human after all.

Connie rested her eyes, taking in a deep breath in the cool evening air. That was the only reason she missed it. All it had taken was one fumble, which had unsurprisingly been initiated by Steven.

The Crystal Gems were caught in the ardour, they had lost themselves to the music and hadn't seen the impending disaster, as they all slowly moved towards each other. It was like a magnet was in the middle, hypnotically bringing them closer and closer. Because of the gems' thousands of years of experience, this was no problem for them, as Garnet and Pearl solitarily danced and Amethyst weaved between them, close enough to touch but not actually touching, and like a string was drawing and tightening around them, they came ever so closer. It was almost like they were one figure, dancing heatedly together and moving and flowing around each other like mercury in a fragile but stable equilibrium.

Steven, not to be outdone, gritted his teeth and threw himself into the close trio. He nearly lost his balance, teetering on the edge of unbalancing the threesome, but it was no use. His flailing arms caught Amethyst's hair and yanked it, in an attempt to grab onto something stable. This, in turn, caused Amethyst to shriek loudly, snapping the other two out of their trance-like state.

They found themselves hurtling towards each other, and instead of a painful bump, a flash of light filled the air.

Greg, stuffing his face with the snacks on the table, had turned around just in time to see the tail end of the impressive showdown and the disastrous conclusion. He had no words to describe what he had seen. His mouth dropped open, and an infinite number of possibilities for album covers and music swam before his eyes. He had never seen anything like it.

Before him, stood an eighty-metre tall woman that bore a striking resemblance to the temple that lay just to the side. In fact, if it weren't for the colour, the seven, instead of eight, arms and the shorter, but still curly, hair, he would have thought it was an exact replica. The sheer enormity of the woman sent his mind spinning and the slice of pizza in his hand falling to the sand. He barely even noticed.

Connie had opened her eyes when she felt the flash searing her eyelids, and had promptly fallen to the ground when she saw the giant woman kneeling before her eyes, where there had once stood a group of dancing gems. After a few seconds, she could only come to one conclusion, Steven had thrown them off beat with his wild dancing (read: flailing) and had propelled them into bumping into each other, and as a result, fusing. She was spot on.

The giant woman had short, curly, dark rainbow hair with pale, pastel highlights. A dark pinkish purple face mask covered her forehead and the top of her head, holding back her unruly hair. A giant white pearl sat atop her mask, where the forehead would be, an amethyst lay on the middle of her chest, a rose quartz rested on her navel and a sapphire and a ruby were attached to the palms of one the arms on either side of her body. Her skin was a soft, pinkish purple, with a sleeveless smock that flowed to her waist before splitting off into a skirt that covered one leg. It was the colour of red wine and faded to a lighter shade towards the bottom. Underneath her dress, she wore dark leggings that neatly hugged the shape of her legs like a second skin.

She towered over the two humans and one peridot, nearly twice the size of the temple that lined that cliff. Due to the now night sky, she was only visible through the moonlight and the vast expanse of blocked stars that covered the sky like glitter. However, other than the confusion that painted her face, she did not move, and if it weren't for her hair moving slightly from to the wind, she could have been mistaken for a statue, a fairly large statue at that.

Despite her outward appearance, her inner thoughts were a different matter. Emotions raged through her like a hurricane, a mixture of disbelief, panic, and amazement that was distinctly Steven's. Voices shouted in the shared mind space as they tried to make sense of what happened, Pearl panicking, Amethyst cackling, Ruby yelling and Steven squealing. Finally, a completely out of character sharp roar from Sapphire silenced them, partly from the cold zap that underlaid her command, but mostly because she _had_ commanded them.

 _'It seems that we have accidentally fused…'_ Sapphire said calmly, as if the last few minutes hadn't just happened. Her statement seemed to snap them out of their shock and stupor.

' _Well, what do we do now? We can't stay like this! Let's separate right now, and forget this ever happened._ ' said Pearl placatingly, almost as if to reassure herself. And she had nearly succeeded. Except Amethyst chose then to speak.

' _What! Split now? No way! We should totally test out this new body! Come on, we've got to show Steven how we were in the war. Even I don't know how it was in the war, I didn't exist then! Steven, you want to know how this body is, right?_ '

' _Yeah! This is so cool, I can't believe I'm fused with all of you right now. Peaaaaarl, can we pleeease stay like this?_ ' Steven said in a pleading tone and had he been visible, giant stars would have enveloped his eyes. Pearl imagined this and just couldn't say no to that face.

' _Ugh, fine._ ' Pearl conceded, and Steven squealed in delight and excitement.

* * *

At the same time, in a galaxy far, far away, the diamonds were planning their next move. After lecturing Blue Diamond yet again about visiting the menagerie, Yellow Diamond assembled her team of battle advisors and was now in the middle of a military conference. So far, however, they had gotten nowhere. One reason was the gems' persistence and stubborn refusal to call the Diamonds by anything except their honorary titles, which had quickly gotten tiresome. Yellow Diamond was very close to losing it and shattering all the gems. Even Blue Diamond seemed more annoyed than depressed.

'My Diamond, my brilliant, lustrous, coruscating, dazzling—' started a zircon for the hundredth time in the same hour, before getting interrupted by an obviously furious Diamond, and shrank down as Yellow Diamond's wrath concentrated on her.

'That's. Enough.' Yellow Diamond gritted out with barely restrained anger. 'I have come to a decision, and there will be no more argument! All of this ends NOW. Blue Diamond and I will deal with this ourselves. We will go to earth and finish Rose Quartz. That way, NOTHING will be able to mess this up. We won't fail.'

Shocked silence permeated the room, and even Blue Diamond seemed somewhat surprised. However, she did not argue. A murmur swept through the meeting, but no one spoke up in fear of invoking Yellow Diamond's rage even more.

'Dismissed.' Yellow Diamond waved her hand with a satisfied smirk and waited for everyone to leave the room before turning to Blue Diamond with a serious expression, 'First, we will observe, then act. We will be prepared. Also, let's notify White Diamond, she may want a part in this.'

Blue Diamond's eyes widened, 'Are you sure?' A pause, then: 'Alright, I trust your judgement.'


	3. Diamond Encounter

On earth, the fusion was still in a state of inner conflict.

' _So now that we are a fusion…what are we called?_ ' asked Steven.

' _Uhhh, we are dark in colour. Obsidian? But we're not_ that _dark._ ' Pearl said thoughtfully.

' _But we_ are _mostly reddish pink._ ' commented Ruby.

' _Oh, how about Tourmaline?_ ' suggested Pearl, ' _It's mostly reddish pink but can also have other colours._ '

' _Alright! We are Tourmaline!_ ' Steven said animatedly.

' _Besides that, we should use this opportunity to practise this fusion, so that if the Diamonds come, we can be a little more prepared,_ ' said Sapphire in her calm voice. They all agreed and individually started doing their own things. While this may have seemed perfectly normal to them in their fusion, their actual appearance was a different matter.

Greg and Connie snapped out of their daze and confusedly watched the fusion. It seemed as if she was doing some crazy dance. After a few minutes, she settled down and knelt on the beach. Except the beach was too small for her giant body. Her knees wound up half submerged in the ocean.

'Helloooo Greggg aaand Cooonnniiiieee…' said Tourmaline.

'Um hi?' replied Connie politely, if a little unsure.

'What are you guys doing?' asked Greg directly.

'Weeee deciiideeed tooo maaaaake uuuuse oooof oouuur fuuuusioooon…' replied the fusion, 'Weee aaaare gooiiing tooo practiiiise oouuur cooooordinaaaaatioooon…'

'Sounds like you'll be needing it,' observed Greg, 'but maybe some other time. It's getting late and Steven's bedtime was an hour ago.'

'Buuuut daaaaaaaad…I feeel fiiiine…I'm not sleeepy at aaall…' said Tourmaline with a whine that was distinctly Steven's.

'Because we are fuuused, our physicaaaal and mentaaaal compoooneeents are combiiiined…Steeven nooow has several thouuusand yeaars added on to himmm…weee are one being nooow…buuuut…you humaaans should get your sleeeep…' said Tourmaline with an educational tone that was distinctly Pearl's.

Greg didn't seem too convinced but he nodded anyway. 'Well, I'm off to bed then, don't stay up too late Steven. Connie, do you want me to drop you off?'

'Yes please, Mr Universe. Goodnight Steven, tell me everything tomorrow.' Connie waved jauntily at the fusion before making her way to Greg's van and hopping in.

'Ok, goodniiiight da— Greeeeg and Connieeeee…' replied the fusion as the van drove away.

Little did they know that for the first time in thousands of years, diamonds had taken residence in the gem base on the moon once again. They were calmly awaiting their chance to strike back.

Tourmaline was testing out her fusion. She brought out her hammer and swung it around in a few experimental turns. She waddled into the ocean and probingly swung the hammer in a wide arc, slamming it down on the surface of the sea. Instantly, massive waves surged from the impact and water showered down, along with various forms of marine life such as fish and seaweed. A wry smile twisted her mouth and she twirled the hammer once more before bringing out her bow and arrow.

Fusion allows gems to enhance their individual and innate abilities so that they are better than they had ever been before. This meant that due to Sapphire's amplified future vision, she had predicted the diamonds' arrival on the moon base as soon as they'd fused. They had also seen their plan and decided to mix things up a bit. Now that they had sent away potential casualties, they could go all out.

Of course, they had also noticed Peridot hiding behind a few rocks. She waddled back to the shore and braced one of her hands on the beach. With two fingers, she leaned over and picked up Peridot by her triangular head. Peridot wriggled furiously.

'Hey! Hey! Put me down!' she yelled, 'I wasn't doing anything!'

'Noooo, you were merely obserrrrving our actions weren't youuuu? Weeeell, never mind, I wasn't going to ask about thaaaat. Actuallyyy, I have foreseen the diamonds watching us from the moon and I just wanted to notify youuu. I will be confronting them soon, so if you want to run, now's your chancccce.' Tourmaline murmured to the now still Peridot. She gently placed her down on the ground again.

'No way! I am an integral part of this group, you need me! When you are stuck in a tricky situation, I'll jump out and surprise them. I'll impress them with my amazing magnetic abilities, and they'll be so surprised, they'll lose! I'll just stay in my hiding spot, so make sure they don't see me!' Peridot ran over to her previous hiding spot.

Tourmaline 'hmm'ed and turned back to the ocean. She stood up but didn't go back to the ocean. She stayed on the sandy beach. Tossing up some boulders, she summoned her bow and formed an arrow made of light. She precisely shot each boulder straight through the middle, then shot the pieces that broke off from their shattering. She purposely sent one extra arrow straight for the hands that were on the moon.

The arrow twinkled out of the earth's atmosphere and disappeared into the image of the half moon. Tourmaline smirked. Five minutes later, a giant battered yellow hand careened into sight and crashed into the ocean. A second later, two giant figures shot out of the top, another second later, the hand exploded.

Yellow shards flew everywhere, but thankfully didn't reach the town. It mostly fell back into the ocean, perhaps going on to create a whole new legend. One of the two figures that had escaped from the sinking wreckage slammed down on the beach with such force, a plume of sand and dust shot up into the air, forming a thick, opaque haze. A gust of wind blew away the dust and revealed Blue Diamond standing alone on the beach. Blue Diamond's shoulders drooped slightly, and she held her hood close so that it covered her face. Slowly, she raised her head so that a furious expression could be seen under her hood. Her eyebrows were furrowed uncharacteristically, and a cold blaze burned in her eyes. Tourmaline tensed, ready for battle.

'You dare destroy my ship and claim this land that Pink was _shattered_ in, you filthy fusion? You are an affront to her legacy and her will. I thought we had destroyed you in the war, but it seems that you have persisted, and lived on this little scrap of land for far too long. No matter, we shall put an end to that now. No more will her resting place be contaminated by you disgusting off colours,' Blue Diamond spoke in a celestial voice laced with steel and sorrow.

Blue Diamond raised her hands and a blue light cascaded from them. She drew her hands together and the blue light shrunk to the size of a marble before widening out in a far bigger radius, enveloping the fusion within it. A deep feeling of grief and devastation flooded Tourmaline's emotions until she could barely think of anything else. It took everything just to remain fused.

The other figure, meanwhile, had flown off into the direction of where the cluster had been buried. A loud boom echoed from there soon after Blue Diamond's attack and dust clouds started floating to the sky. Thankfully, there was a protective bubble enclosing the cluster, but Tourmaline knew it wouldn't last. It would certainly delay the impending formation, but that would be it. The fusion watched the violent explosions with mild concern and a whole lot of sorrow, but thanks to her amplified future vision, she had foreseen only two possible outcomes, one potentially earth destroying and the other certainly far more advantageous. It was all up to Steven to direct the path of time into their favour.

Normally, sleep would be a requirement for Steven to telepathically and empathetically connect to the billions of gem shards fused inside the Earth's mantle, or any sentient life form really. However, Tourmaline amplified this ability so that Steven could link with the cluster's conscience with little difficulty, and that's precisely what Tourmaline did. This was, of course, made far more difficult with Blue Diamond's soul-crushing sadness bearing down on them, but thanks to the emotional stability and support of their fusion, Tourmaline managed to push through.

With a booming roar, she extended a pink light outwards, with her in the centre, and a feeling of calm reassurance and the emotion that a warm blanket and a roaring hearth evoked to her surroundings in a broad enough radius so that it reached the cluster. It was soothing and gentle, like a comforting hand with a cup of hot chocolate, and though it did not delay the cluster's imminent emergence, it eased the force and the struggle of its formation, as well as the burden of Blue Diamond's despair.

The strength of Tourmaline's feelings didn't dissipate, and though the radius reduced in size, it still remained as a thin protective bubble around the fusion. In fact, the range of Tourmaline's empathetic wave was so extensive that the entire population of Beach City felt it, and then some. They felt just a little closer to each other, and just a little warmer towards their immediate company. Their struggles seemed to disappear and the day became just a bit brighter, which may or may not have been due to the rising sun that was less than an hour away.

The diamonds had definitely felt it. It was as if Blue Diamond had been pushed away by a physical force. In fact, she had been pushed all the way back into the ocean. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she let go of her attack.

'What…that aura…how…how did you do that…? What was that…?' she said sounding a little lost.

Tourmaline answered with just one word, a whisper that seemed to push through the air, magnified by the raw emotions raging behind it and proliferate in strength and power. The corner of her mouth curled up into a warm smile.

'Hope.'

Then, the bubble popped.

 **A/N: Sorry (not sorry) for the cliffhanger. Actually, I thought of this idea right after Pink Diamond's reveal, and it was mostly about fusion. I wanted them to fuse and I just randomly thought of a dance party. I really wasn't trying to copy Rebecca Sugar's idea for Reunited! But anyway, this fan fiction will be a little different to the story so far, since I want to explore fusion. Please leave comments on my writing! I would love lots of positive feedback, and I wouldn't hate some constructive criticism. Thanks for reading and thank you for the reviews! XD**


	4. Pink Corrosion

Tourmaline felt it deep inside her, it was as if a dam had burst open. The bubble had been the dam to hold back the cluster's emergence, but with the breaking of the ground by Yellow Diamond, this barrier was quickly deteriorating. The cluster was rapidly losing its calm and composure, and the billions of gem shards once more felt the excruciating pressure compelling them to form. There really wasn't much of a choice, but as Tourmaline's empathetic wave of hope and reassurance washed over them, they could _think_. Tourmaline had allowed the cluster to focus. And with this newfound focus, the cluster made a decision; it would help the one who eased the pain and protected them.

So, with that thought in mind, it formed.

Thousands of ghostly white hands rose from the cracks in the ground, then tightly wound themselves together to form the shape of a hand. Red and brown colours appeared on the pasty white exterior so that it looked like an arm made of muscles. It slowly flexed all its joints and experimentally swung its arm around.

Yellow Diamond stood back watched on with a smug smirk on her face. It was all going to plan. Soon, the cluster would emerge completely and destroy the planet from the inside out, and Pink's world would finally have some use. Blue Diamond could be as sentimental as she wanted, but it didn't change the fact that earth still needed to be used for the ever-growing gem expansion.

It had been a surprise when she felt that familiar aura, but Yellow Diamond put it to the back of her thoughts. The possibilities it could be…Yellow Diamond couldn't think about it. It had to have been a coincidence…yes, it was probably the earth playing tricks on her mind. This was Pink's one and only colony, of course it would have remnants of her soul buried within it, still active over five thousand years later. Maybe it was Rose Quartz that had released that aura, and since she had been part of Pink's consort, her aura may have transferred a small amount to her. Well, whatever the reason was, when the world is destroyed, Yellow Diamond would be able to move on. It was an act of weakness to leave and give up on earth during the war, but now they would rectify that mistake.

She didn't know how they could have possibly survived the diamonds' attack during the war, she thought they had destroyed every gem. Shattering… there was no coming back from that. Despite the Diamond Authority's godlike status, even they couldn't bring back shattered gems. Even the rebellion leader Rose Quartz with all her healing abilities wouldn't be able to bring them back. And it was all because of one gem, White Diamond. The supreme leader of all gems. Even Blue and Yellow Diamond had to obey her commands. So, if they managed to defeat them, and there was an extremely minuscule chance that they would, they would stand absolutely no chance once White Diamond arrived. She would make short work of them.

Even the thought of what she could do…Yellow Diamond found it was better to dwell on other things. These thoughts, they were useless. Look at Blue Diamond, how she had become after Pink had been shattered. It was as if she had been shattered instead. She had been _devastated_. It had taken thousands of years to get her to where she was now, and even that was barely a shell of her previous self. All she could ever think about was Pink. Sure, it had been deeply disconcerting and disquieting, especially the thought of a diamond being able to _be_ shattered, but moping didn't change anything. There were gems that depended on you, and you had to be strong. Otherwise, who else would they look up to?

You have to move on, or else the universe would move on without you.

Which was why Yellow Diamond chose to focus on the cluster's emergence rather than the presence she had felt earlier, and the possibilities it may contain. Even if it had sent delicious shivers running up her spine, and a hopefulness she hadn't felt for a long, long time. Even if it could mean possibilities she couldn't afford to consider.

After all, there was no way Pink Diamond could still be alive and _whole_ , right?

With that preposterous thought, Yellow Diamond turned her focus back to the cluster. Which was now heading straight towards her. With no signs of slowing down. Oh dear, she thought. Fingers positioned with the thumb and middle finger together, the giant hand flicked her back towards Blue Diamond, who was for some reason standing in the ocean quite far from the rebel's precinct. Yellow Diamond may have been a diamond, but even she wouldn't have been able to withstand the physical force of a billion gem shards forcefully fused together.

However, one thought ran through her mind as she sailed through the sky and hurtled towards Blue Diamond at a perilous speed: if even the cluster had rebelled against the Diamond Authority, and had chosen to side with the Crystal Gem rebels, what did that mean for Homeworld? All gems were supposed to look up to their diamond leaders, so what did the rebels have that they didn't? They had to have been hiding something. Some weapon or mind control possibly. Of course, whatever they used, it had to be ineffective against the diamonds. But what could their secret be?

That was when she landed. Right on top of Blue Diamond. She had to say, the cluster had excellent aim. It was a shame it hadn't destroyed the earth and had instead joined the rebels' side. A real loss of potential. Ah well, there was always the next world.

Yellow Diamond leapt up from her position on top of Blue Diamond and dusted off her light manifestation of her gem. There was no way she would be able to defeat the cluster, so she decided to focus on the rebels instead. Correction, rebel. It seemed they had fused. Yellow Diamond wasn't surprised. She glanced at Blue Diamond, and looked back to the fusion. Then, quickly, fast enough to give any inferior gem whiplash, she snapped her head back to Blue's face to reassert what she thought she had seen.

Fat tears leaked from her eyes and dripped down her face, but that was normal, that wasn't what had caught her sudden scrutiny. It was her expression. Something she hadn't seen in a long time.

It was barely there, but a slight smile curved her lips, and a shining glimmer could be seen in her eyes, one that spoke of hope and yearning. For what, Yellow Diamond could certainly guess. Even she had almost thought of the same thing, and she knew that Blue would feel that dangerous hope even more strongly. She knew what Blue was likely feeling right now, so she hated herself for doing what she was about to do. Yes, even the great diamonds had regrets time to time. But, it had to be done, and no matter how much she loathed herself, no matter how much Blue Diamond may come to detest her, this hope had to be destroyed. They were treading a far too dangerous line.

So, Yellow Diamond wearily gripped Blue Diamond's shoulders and turned her towards herself. She looked into her eyes, 'Blue, that feeling…'

Blue Diamond, as if sensing what she was about to say, let her smile drop. Her eyes seemed to plead with Yellow Diamond, 'Don't…whatever you are about to say, just…don't.'

Yellow Diamond almost gave in, but resolved herself. It had to be done. 'Don't be delusional, Blue. It isn't Pink. No matter how much you may miss her and want her back, there is no coming back from a shattering. This was a trick, an illusion. It has to be.'

The light in Blue Diamond's eyes died. She swallowed thickly and turned her face away. She took a long, shaky breath. She looked back to Yellow Diamond's eyes, but instead of the ravaged expression Yellow Diamond expected to see, determination shone in her eyes.

'I want. To see. For myself.' she said quietly. Yellow Diamond had never seen this emotion on her face. She could only stare as Blue Diamond ripped away from her arms and shot up into the air.

When she landed in front of the fusion, Yellow Diamond snapped out of her trance. She couldn't let her destroy herself. They had already shattered Pink Diamond. She would NOT let them shatter Blue Diamond. She couldn't change Pink's fate, but she could change Blue's. And she would do anything to stop her shattering.

Well, assuming they could shatter her. There was no way they could win against the _diamonds_ after all. Besides, White Diamond was surely coming.

White Diamond would definitely obliterate them.

Yellow Diamond followed Blue Diamond. She dashed past Blue Diamond and attempted to engage the fusion in combat. However, Blue Diamond, not to be outdone, fought to keep ahead of her.

'Stop, Yellow! I want to know what they have to say! Please, I just want to know if it's really Pink, because if it is, then this changes _everything_.' Yellow Diamond couldn't afford to listen to her.

She raised her arm and shot a yellow surge of her power at the fusion, who used her shield to block it and rushed towards her with her sword. The fusion swung her sword at Yellow Diamond, but she dodged it just in time so that her sword only grazed her body. However, the strange pink light that surrounded the fusion's body and so had transferred to her sword sent thrills of emotion through her being. It was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain her emotional distance from this situation. It evoked the feelings she had felt when Pink Diamond had still been whole. And it…unnerved her.

Blue Diamond was yelling at her to stop from the outside, conscious of the danger Yellow Diamond's attacks posed. Finally, Yellow Diamond, resorting to physical combat rather than relying on her power, landed a punch squarely on the fusion's jaw with such force, the fusion's head snapped to the side in a sickening crunch and she was thrown back several meters before bouncing and skidding to a stop at the foot of the cliff.

A snap sounded. The fusion did not move.

Blue Diamond screamed, probably thinking the worst. She ran to the fusion, to perhaps check on her, or maybe put up some sort of defence against any more attacks from Yellow Diamond, but she would never know.

Because at that moment, a completely unexpected turn of events took place. Or maybe it was completely expected, maybe it was the only course of action that would make sense.

As Blue Diamond rushed towards the fusion, Yellow Diamond also acted. It was a moment of weakness, she had let her deeply buried, or so she thought, emotions take control. It was so rare for her to act like this, to lose her composure, but even though she had been the one to hit her so hard, the one who had put in all that power, she had never expected it to actually land. The fusion had been dodging her so exceptionally, Yellow Diamond had just thought she would dodge this one. But, she was a diamond after all. No one could be expected to keep up with her.

The emotions that the pink light radiating from the fusion elicited had been difficult to endure. They had been brimming under the surface, suppressed under a stubborn refusal to consider Pink's presence, and now that she had done possibly irrevocable damage to the fusion, they had burst forth in the most unimaginable way. Concern for the source of Pink Diamond's continued presence spurred Yellow Diamond on into forgetting her trepidation and, without thinking, she had also rushed towards the fusion with Blue Diamond.

Thanks to her apparent lapse in judgement, her movements were clumsy, un-diamond-like. Blue Diamond had been particularly hysterical, and so her movements were quite uncoordinated as well. So, they had both been charging towards the fusion from almost the same direction with dangerously blundering movements.

As a result, in their haste, one flailing arm was all it took. Surprisingly, it was Yellow Diamond who had initiated it. She flung her arm out into the path of Blue Diamond, who tried to dodge it but instead pummelled straight into it due to her momentum. This had them both pushing forward at an alarming rate, and they were unable to stop themselves in time.

They were going to crash into the fusion.

Now, Tourmaline had only snapped her sword during the punch. None of her gems were actually cracked. The reason for her immobility was that she had been trying to think of battle strategies in her head. She had also been struggling to stay fused because the punch had nearly knocked her out. Inside her head, Steven had been trying to stop them from fighting, which had resulted in the inability to dodge that punch in the first place, and no one was listening.

Of course, their argument wasn't enough for them to unfuse, but Steven wanted them to talk and sort out the reason for Blue Diamond's strange reaction to the pink light Tourmaline had somehow emitted. He also wanted to know the reason why she had suddenly started crying, and not in a grief-stricken way. She had actually smiled. Smiled! Steven hadn't known if she was capable of that.

So Steven, being entirely empathetic, wanted to know Blue Diamond's grief. He wanted to console her, after all, it was his mother's fault that Pink Diamond no longer existed. And Steven being Steven, made the rest of the fusion see his way while Tourmaline lay motionless against the rocky wall of the cliff.

As their internal discussion came to an end, Tourmaline opened her eyes and saw two diamonds heading straight for her in a completely uncharacteristic way. Yellow Diamond's face was streaked with worry while Blue Diamond's face looked more hysterical than usual. She looked up in wonder and surprise.

Then, they collided.

Except, there was no pain, only a bright flash of light.

Strength, power and emotions ran deep within them all as they realised what had happened. The fusion rose her _enormous_ hands and brought them in front of her.

'I'm…fuuused…? _Againnn_?'

A sob erupted from her, and a surge of longing and joy burned through her.

' _Pink…Diamond…? It's…it's really you…?_ ' Blue Diamond whispered inside their shared mind space.

' _It can't be…Pink was alive all this time? Tell me the truth, is that really you Pink?_ ' Yellow Diamond questioned. They all waited with baited breath. There was a shocked silence.

Then, before any of the Crystal Gems could form a rebuke, a weak, feeble voice quietly said, ' _I wanted to tell you, Steven…but, I just, couldn't. I'm sorry._ '

It was, of course, Pearl who said this. But before anyone could react, an even bigger twist presented itself. A giant white head attached to a torso descending from the sky.

It was White Diamond at last.

* * *

 **A/N: Ooooh, another cliffhanger. Will they unfuse at this unexpected revelation, or will the shock of White Diamond's arrival hold them together? Will Blue and Yellow Diamond stick up for Pink? Is this the end? Or will White Diamond end up seeing their side of things and sympathise with them?**

 **I realise some of the characters are a little out of character, but I just wanted to make it a little more lighthearted. Or I was going to, but this chapter kind of undermines that doesn't it?**

 **I'm totally not cruelly enjoying the excruciating suspense you guys are going through. Or maybe not. If you're anything like me, you binge read the first few chapters, forget about it for a while, then catch up when you finally remember. That way I almost never have to go through the pain of a cliffhanger. So sorry when I say I DON'T FEEL YOUR PAIN HAHAHA! (Actually, it works 'cause I have a terrible memory ;-; — sorry, a frustratingly selective memory. I only remember irrelevant things TT) Thanks again for reading! XD**


	5. Rose Quartz

**A/N: Finally, the long awaited temporary remedy to your burning curiosity (temporary because it will only be a matter of time until the next one, which is this chapter).**

The fusion stared at the white arm as it landed on the edge of the beach. Part of her watched with absolute horror and trepidation while the rest nervously observed with confusion and mild curiosity. Their current predicament was long forgotten. The fusion stood up. Now that the diamonds were part of their fusion, they easily towered over the temple. The day had brightened considerably, and the sun was peeking up just over the horizon. In a few minutes, the whole town would be awake.

The head and torso landed gently on the waves, the entire ship so large the fusion had to crane her head up to see it all. Something shot out of the mouth and slammed onto the sand, kicking up dust and sand. A gust of wind blew it away to reveal a giant, white being. She was enormous, slightly taller than the fusion, even with the two diamonds fused. She had spiky hair that seemed to glitter harshly in the early morning light and a long sweeping cloak that covered her entire body, with sharp, protruding shoulder guards. A sparkling white diamond rested on her forehead. In fact, her entire being seemed to shine with a divine radiance, it was almost blinding to look at.

However, the most unsettling part was her smile. It seemed to be frozen on her face, in a perpetual, emotionless grin.

'Hello, Diamonds. Hope you've had fun on this little rock, and released some steam. Play time is over though, you are needed in Homeworld. Everyone is so worried, you don't want them to be concerned now do you? Come on, let's go back and put everyones' gems to ease. We can be our perfect selves again. Pink Diamond, it's delightful to see you again. Everyone was very alarmed at the news of your shattering, but they are relieved. Aren't you excited to see your home? Well, come now. Homeworld is waiting.'

The fusion gaped at the diamond. Blue and Yellow Diamond were especially confused at her calm and unperturbed demeanour. They had expected White Diamond to blow her top and pop them, suppressing them in a bubble for the next few millennia. While the Crystal Gems didn't have many expectations to begin with, they were still rather surprised at the somewhat amiable impression White Diamond had made. They had expected a more antagonistic greeting.

'I-' the fusion tried to speak but she was interrupted.

'Come along now, everyone will be so relieved to see you whole. Pink, your precious amethysts are safe and sound, ready to serve you. They will be pleased to see you again.' Her character was so strong and commanding that the fusion couldn't speak. Behind White Diamond, a small white bubble was flying towards them at a high speed. It slowed down quite a lot before coming to a rest by White Diamond's feet. The bubble opened and a tiny white pearl stepped out. Or rather, she seemed to float.

Her features were very small from the fusion's towering height, but her heightened vision more than made up for this. While it was expected by Blue and Yellow Diamond, the Crystal Gems were struck with discomfort. Half of the pearl's face was obscured with cracks, and she moved with complete stiffness and stillness. Her eyes seemed to see straight ahead, and like her diamond, her face was frozen in a faint, absent smile. Her light manifestation was completely devoid of colour, instead having a range of greys colouring her clothing.

When she moved, instead of walking with the elegance of Blue and Yellow Pearl, who seemed as if their every action was a dance, she seemed to float through the air. Her toes were unceasingly pointed down, and her arms were raised to shoulder level, as if she had been captured in that one state of elegance and had been stuck in that position for a long time.

She was there, but it was like she wasn't. She had no presence. It was like a ghost was floating towards her.

As she made her way closer to the fusion, Yellow Diamond snapped back to her senses and took over the fusion. She would not let Pink out of her sight after so long.

'White Diamond, I must refuse. Pink has…found her home here. Come on White, leave us be.' She said warily said in a gruff tone. It was clear that she wasn't used to such acts of caution.

The pearl came to a stop midway to their position while White Diamond simply stared at them, still with that unsettling smile on her face. It was as if she had not heard what the fusion said. There was a heavy silence hanging in the air. The fusion waited with baited breath.

Then White Diamond twitched. A spasm overtook her face in a microsecond, so fast the fusion was only able to see it because of their superior vision. It was like her image was cracking.

'Everyone is waiting for you. You will come to Homeworld and everyone will be relieved. Everyone will have a splendid time again. You will come home.' Her voice seemed to fall flat. Pearl continued on her way.

'N-no! I won't come!' The fusion leaped away from the pearl. White Diamond's eyes glittered. The pearl froze for a second before continuing on her way towards the fusion.

For the first few minutes, the fusion kept dodging the pearl, but the pearl seemed to grow faster. Eventually, she realised that the beach offered too small a space to comfortably and effectively move about freely. With a giant leap, their combined power adding to her physical prowess, she soared through the air, higher and higher, farther and farther away from the beach, White Pearl still following her. She kept rising until she couldn't even see White Diamond, before falling back to earth. When she landed in a semi-arid, remote area, a resounding boom resonated and giant clouds of sand and dust floated to the air, the fusion now crouching in the midst of a giant crater.

White Pearl landed not too far away, and came flying through the vegetation like it wasn't there. In fact, she seemed to phase through the vegetation, it looked as if the plants were going through her. Soon, it was a struggle to keep ahead of the pearl. It certainly didn't help matters when White Diamond also landed some distance from the fusion and the pearl's chase. That moment of distraction had them almost caught.

Desperate, the fusion brought out her hammer and tried to strike the pearl. However, rather than hitting home, it went right through her. The fusion was flabbergasted. Even if the hammer had been able to go through her body, which was simply a light manifestation, it shouldn't have been able to go through her gem. Besides, the hammer wasn't just an ordinary tool, it was the fusion's weapon, a light manifestation in itself, and should have been able to strike the light manifestation of the other gem.

While the fusion was pondering this, the pearl created a giant, white, opaque bubble, not unlike Steven's own protective pink transparent bubble. It grew, and kept growing and growing, showing no sign of stopping. It was almost to the height of the fusion before she snapped out of it and jumped away. White Diamond's face twitched again, this time more noticeably and more violently. The white pearl whizzed towards where the fusion had landed. She barely had enough time to dodge. The fusion's mind, or rather minds, whirled as she tried to think of a way to defeat the pearl. Seeing as they had no idea of what they were up against, Sapphire's future vision was useless. They were stumped, the only thing they could do now was dodge, and even that they could barely manage. It was very surprising that a single pearl could keep up with a Diamond, let alone three diamonds fused, and then some. Then, Amethyst had a brilliant idea.

' _Hey guys, what if we used the diamond's power! I bet, since we're all fused, their power would be totally overpowering. We should work together to defeat her!_ ' The diamonds saw no fault in her plan and agreed. Raising her hand, the fusion drew her power until two different colours radiated from her arm; blue and yellow. It didn't take much effort to combine them to make a green colour similar to Peridot. She had been doing this while she was running from the pearl, so when it was ready, she jumped forward with a quick burst of speed, and turned around and faced the pearl, who was hot on her tail. A moment later, the shot was fired as fast as lightning, and the pearl was unable to dodge.

The light cascaded from her arm and flowed through the air. It was almost elegant in its passage, though it had passed in an instant. The entire body of the pearl was caught in it. For a second, nothing seemed to happen. Then, she froze. Glowing green cracks began to emanate from the pearl's body, spreading out from the gem on her abdomen like shattered glass. Tears welled from her eyes, but looked very strange because her face was still stuck in that mindless smile. Her eye seemed to go extra wide, and green light shone from the cracks in her other eye. She became a blindingly bright green light, before she exploded with a giant puff of smoke. A clink sounded as the now dormant pearl clunked to the ground, its shiny exterior glinting coldly in the late morning sun. A small crack ran along the side.

The fusion quickly bubbled it in a green bubble, before tapping it and sending it home, wherever that may be now. She looked at White Diamond. White Diamond looked at her. By now, her smile had faded. Her expression was cold and remote. Her radiance glowed icily, the light stabbing at their eyes, as spiky as her glitterry hair. Her black lips were twisted in an unseemly way, and her entire body was stiff, rigid. The fusion nervously waited for her to make her move. Finally, White Diamond opened her mouth.

'Yo-ou- everyon- homew-' it was as if she couldn't make sentences. She shut her mouth tightly. Coldness seeped into her gaze and sharpened it. This time, a definite smirk lifted the corners of her mouth. A smug, confident smirk. 'You. Will. Come. To. Homeworld. **And you will obey my command.** '

She slowly rose her arm, the pointed fingers elegantly straightened and the palm facing the fusion. White Diamond's eyes sought the fusion's, pinning her under her heavy gaze. There must have been more to it than that, however, as the fusion found herself frozen in place. She couldn't move, and she couldn't dodge.

Light from around White Diamond's palm seemed to be getting sucked into it, and her hand glowed, the light becoming glaringly brighter. The fusion tried to break free from the spell White Diamond had put her under, straining against the invisible bonds holding her in place. It was as if she was a deer in headlights. She could only watch as the light grew brighter and brighter.

Eventually, it became so bright, that it was like staring straight into the sun. It was as if she had become a star. It was too much to look at, so the fusion closed their eyes. They tried to struggle against the mysterious hold they were under, but they didn't even budge. They even tried unfusing, but it was hopeless. There was no way they could avoid this. It was the end.

' _To think it all started with a beach party...'_ Amethyst sighed wistfully, ' _well, it was nice knowing y'all._ ' At least they could converse internally.

' _Steven, I'm sooo sorry for not telling you about your mother being Pink Diamond. I wanted to, I really did, but…she told me to leave the past as it is and look forward to the future. And I simply could not refuse. It had been her last command to me as a diamond. The only reason I was able to now was because the diamonds had told you. I'm so sorry Steven._ ' Pearl said pleadingly, begging him to believe her. Instead, it was Sapphire who answered her.

' _I can't believe…after all this time…why would she do this?! I trusted her, I didn't look into her with my future vision, but she betrayed me. All she said…about peace and off-colour gems and choosing our own destiny…were they all lies?! Was our love built on a lie?! She was just a diamond after all!_ ' Sapphire was distraught, her voice shook with rage and betrayal.

' _Sapphire…you know Rose wasn't like that._ ' There was a moment of silence. Everyone kept quiet, knowing that Pearl was finally going to tell them the truth, and divulge in the past she was forbidden to speak of. The diamonds, especially, perked up.

' _When I was first assigned to her, oh, say maybe 10 000 years ago, I was told to be what she wanted, I was told to be her toy. I didn't have many expectations, I knew my job. But she…treated me differently, like I was worth more than an ornament to be displayed. She talked to me as if I was an equal, though of course I never treated her with anything less than what her status demanded. She asked me for my opinion, she took my words into consideration._

 _She wasn't being a diamond._

 _I quietly waited and watched, playing my role as the decoration, but I couldn't help but notice how the responsibility of being a diamond stifled her. There was only one thing she desired above all else. After much…negotiation, she finally got what she wanted. Her own colony. At first, she was just like any other diamond, supervising the workers, planning the construction of the kindergartens and the colonies. She worked tirelessly to make her gems content with the plans and working on earth._

 _She was as any diamond would be with her colony._

 _But then, she began to dream._

 _When the work was done and whenever she would have a break, she would sit in the supervision room, sometimes for hours, simply observing the gems that she had created; their behaviour, relationships, emotions, movement. She was enthralled by their incessant chatter and goofing around, their strong bonds with each other, and the way they popped out of the ground, already knowing what to do. One day, she looked to me with such longing in her eyes. I couldn't say no. When no one was looking, she would sneak down to earth, disguising herself as Rose Quartz. It was just for fun, at first. She'd go down for a few giggles, let loose and mingle with the other gems. I had never seen her happier. She was almost obsessive. I would try to limit her interaction, in fear of getting caught, but she was more and more convinced._

 _She wanted to be with them._

 _She also began to notice the wildlife around her. The natural life on earth. Sometimes she would wander around for a few days, walking through the underbrush and taking in the breathtaking beauty of earth. Thankfully, no one questioned her absences, too afraid of a diamond's wrath. I was her most trusted friend, so she always brought me with her. I felt so important during those days, like it was just me and Rose against the universe._ I _was the one she told her secrets to,_ I _was the one she trusted the most. It was the best years of my life. She also met the natives, and she grew fond of them, sometimes taking some as lovers. She found them fascinating._

 _However, as time passed, I noticed her smile starting to fade, the humour in her eyes wilting. I questioned her, and she told me her plans. She wanted to preserve the life on earth rather than destroy it. She saw what was happening to the world, how the kindergartens were sucking up all the nutrients from the world. She began to hate that which she had first been captivated by. She began to see gem creation as a form of destruction. Then began her ideas of rebellion._

 _Her pseudonym, Rose Quartz, became less fictitious and more real. She would disappear for days as the infamous Rose Quartz planned attacks and gained the trust of fellow quartzes. She loved the idea of being a heroic and noble gem who wanted to save the world from destruction. She wanted to protect the beauty and sanctity of the earth. Her strategy was perfect. Her diamond self would get information and her quartz self would act on it. It turned into a rebellion._

 _It had been a few decades since Rose had gained her infamous title, when she heard of a meeting. She went in with the usual expectations. Go in, pop a few gems and get out. However, one thing derailed her plans. Yes, that's right, she saw the most unlikely fusions of all, something that completely changed the light in which she saw fusion. She saw a sapphire, one of the most upper class gems in the gem society, fusing with a ruby, a common, expendable foot soldier. Her viewpoint was totally challenged. Initially, her main focus was protecting the earth from further destruction due to gem creation. And while she was no ordinary gem, she still held the views and beliefs about gem kind that had been instilled in her since she had popped out of the ground. However, when she saw you fusing…she didn't even know gems could do that._

 _Traditionally, gems could only be fused with their own type. Even then, it was purely for battle purposes, and in dire circumstances. Fusing outside of such a situation was unheard of. Later that day, I tried it with her. I was very clumsy and awkward, but we felt a connection, our hearts were one. It was only for a moment…but I had a glimpse of what it was like. It was_ beautiful _._ ' Pearl's voice which had sounded dreamy, lost in the memories of the past, became less fluent as she realised that everyone was listening. She became a little self-conscious, and had she been visible, a dark blue blush would have highlighted her cheeks.

' _I- ah, I think it was quite an enlightening experience for Rose as well. I'm sure she would have felt- ah, n-not that I'm making assumptions, mind you, just-_ ' she paused, then continued in a more composed manner, ' _So you see, Sapphire and Ruby,_ you _were the ones who influenced and pushed us towards uniting off-colours with gems. Without you, we wouldn't have been seeking to eradicate the walls between each gem class and kind. You broadened our goals, and brought a whole other issue into light. I'm sorry, Sapphire, she never meant for this to happen. Her intentions were born completely out of her pure selflessness, or maybe even selfishness, to protect the world and gems who didn't fit in. She wanted Earth to be a place where everyone could be themselves. She just-'_

' _So you're saying,_ ' Sapphire interrupted, though thankfully much calmer than before, if a little lost, ' _after all this time, we weren't following her but she was following_ us _? We…pushed her towards these goals? Of course, how could I say that she was just a diamond, after she had told us to be ourselves…I'm sorry. Ruby, I shouldn't have said all that. Even if Rose was deceiving us, I should never have doubted our love. Please, forgive me._ ' Sapphire sounded forlorn.

' _It's a surprise to us all Sapphire. We all need to let off some steam. I'm just glad you didn't run off and hide, or shut yourself away, refusing to be with me anymore._ '

Ruby was rather nonchalant about the whole idea, surprisingly. Amethyst, however, was very surprised.

' _Man, I didn't think about this 'cause of White Diamond and all, but I can't believe Rose Quartz, who was the leader of the rebellion against_ Pink Diamond _, and Steven's_ mum _, was actually fighting against herself this entire time! I bet_ no one _saw this coming!_ ' Her mind was still reeling, clearly. ' _But Steven, how are_ you _handling all this? I bet it's been a real rollercoaster ride. Do you…feel like, I dunno, you need to talk about it or something?_ '

' _Thanks for the concern Amethyst. I know it's hard to believe but I'm surprisingly cool with all this. Actually, maybe not so surprising since I barely knew my mum anyway. A lot of things make sense now though, and at least I don't need to worry about my mum being some sort of malevolent diamond shatterer. But guys, I know we're still shocked from Pink Diamond being my mum and all, but is there no way to stop White Diamond from shooting us with her laser hand?_ ' Steven, in this case, was surprisingly the voice of reason. Their attention turned to the paralysis of the fusion's limbs. Try as they might, they still couldn't break free. They were really in a bind, and Sapphire could see no way of escaping.

They were going to fall at the hands of White Diamond.

 **A/N: Is this the end for them? Sorry if Pearl's monologue was too long. In my defence, it had to be done. It was an important part of the show and White Diamond's arrival had just delayed it. Also, I hope I did White Diamond's speech right. I wanted to get that unsettling impression she made.**

 **I've had a busy busy week this week due to exams, so I haven't been able to work on my fan fiction much. Thankfully, all my exams are over so I should be able to work on it a bit more. I hope this chapter was satisfactory. Thank you again for reading!**


	6. Peridot

**A/N: Meanwhile, back on the beach, lonely and left behind… Did anyone forget about Peridot? Because I did, and was stumped on what to do after the end of the previous chapter until I remembered her. Good thing I had one last card to play, right? Hidden away since the very first chapter. Or else I might have actually had to end on the fusion's destruction. Just kidding! I wouldn't do that to you guys. Or this story. It's my first after all. _It needs to be PERFECT…_ just kidding, I know there's a lot of room for improvement, I'm not afraid to admit that. But anyways, onto the story~~**

Peridot stood alone on the beach, her mouth still open from the events that had just transpired. She wouldn't have believed her eyes if the evidence of the battle didn't still remain on the beach. Those diamonds really left scars on the land. Not only did the fusion fight head to head with the diamonds, but _White Diamond_ showed up here of all gems. Her ship still remained on the ocean, its white surface gleaming mockingly, daring Peridot to challenge its owner.

She shook herself out of her stupor. She had to help the fusion. Who _knows_ what they would do without her?

Peridot ran towards the closest warp pad, but when she got there, she realised she had no idea where they had gone. She racked her brains.

'Argh, I'm the worst gem in the universe! How could I lose my friends like that? They're probably about to be shattered right now, anxiously waiting for me and spending all their time thinking about me' — actually forgot about her, as did the author — 'and I just lost them! They can't take down White Diamond without me!' Peridot kicked the edge of the warp pad in her frustration, but then started hopping around holding her foot and howling in agony. Her eyes were tearing. 'Well, I can't do nothing, might as well warp to as many places as possible in hopes of appearing near their location.'

*One hour later*

'This is hopeless, I'll never find them!' Peridot sighed and leant against the edge of the warp pad. The door of Steven's house opened with a creak. She whipped her head around to see who it was. 'Lion? Oh, Lion! Thank the d- thank goodness you're here! You know where the fusion and White Diamond are, don't you? I demand that you take me to them! Right now!'

Lion simply yawned and flopped down. He closed his eyes. Peridot groaned in exasperation. She walked towards the giant lump of pink fur. With a sharp inhale, she pushed Lion with all her strength. It didn't do very much. Lion let out a huff but otherwise stayed still.

'Come on Lion, you're my only chance! They're all undoubtedly counting on me, I can't let them down! After all...what use am I if I can't even be there in their time of need?' she sighed and gave up, instead settling down against Lion's magnanimously soft fur. 'Lion, everyone has a vital role in the Crystal Gems. I mean, I don't mean to brag, but uh, I was a pretty big deal back on Homeworld. I was smarter than the average peridot, and I helped run kindergartens. I was important. But here on earth…everything is so _different_. No one follows any rules. Sometimes it feels like I'm the only gem on earth. No one understands what it was like for me on Homeworld and how different it is here. I just…miss Lapis. I wish she was here. She feels just as out of place as I do. But, unlike me, she's actually powerful, and useful. Ah well, I guess it's for the best. I always mess things up, so maybe it's good that I'm missing out on all the action.' Peridot folded her knees to her chest and stared gloomily out the window.

Lion grunted, and without warning, grabbed the back of Peridot with his teeth and swung her on top of him. He dashed out of the house and onto the sand, accelerating before roaring into the air before him so that a portal appeared. He leaped through before Peridot could jump off or shriek in fea- alarm. When they landed among somewhat rocky terrain with light vegetation, Peridot was thrown to the ground. She got up, dusting herself and glaring at Lion. However, her anger disappeared when she beheld what was before her eyes. She quickly tugged Lion's fur and got back on, her expression tightened with fear. Thankfully, Lion did not object to the rough handling of his precious fur.

The fusion was standing there without moving, as if caught in some trance. Her eyes were locked with White Diamond's, who had an arm outstretched towards her. Blindingly white light emanated from her hand, and seemed to be growing brighter by the second. Peridot knew she didn't have much time. She had to do something before it was too late. Lion seemed to sense her thoughts, and started running. He roared and opened another portal, leaping through it and into mid air, just before White Diamond's arm. He roared again, but this time with a destructive force that rivalled even a diamond's strength. Peridot absently marvelled at this show of power.

It was enough to knock over her arm, and the startled expression on White Diamond's face was priceless. It seemed that Peridot had made it just in time, for a burst of white light erupted from White Diamond's arm, and exploded harmlessly on the ground, no where near the fusion. Lion was slowing down, but managed to make one more portal before crashing to the ground and sliding to a stop at the foot of a giant rock. He lay there, eyes closed. Peridot carefully got off.

'You did well, Lion, but rest now. We've got it from here.' She turned her head to look up at the fusion, who had snapped out of her paralysis. A well of pride and satisfaction rose within her when she saw the whole, mostly unharmed fusion standing before her (even though it was all because of Lion). 'No need to thank me, I just saved your gems. You're welcome, by the way.'

The diamond part of the fusion found this to be a little conceited, but the Crystal Gems had learned to just go with it. One thing was clear, however, their relief was immeasurable, 'Thank you Peridot, and Lion. Without you, I would have been in trouble. I seriously thought that I was going to be corrupted, or worse, shattered!'

A glittering diamond of hope and relief shone in both of their eyes. Whatever White Diamond threw at them, they knew they would triumph.

After all, she was on their world now.

They stiffly nodded to each other, then gazed out to where White Diamond was. She was getting back to her previous composure, but no one could deny the blazing fury roaring in her pale, almost indiscernible eyes. Her aura seemed to crackle with agitated spikes, and the air was uncomfortably hot. Blue and Yellow Diamond knew that whatever was going to take place here on earth, there would be no going back.

'Come on White Diamond,' the fusion beckoned, 'it's time to end this, once and for all.'

White Diamond _roared_ , her eyes flashing and she sped towards them at an insanely fast pace, the fusion barely having time to dodge. Despite her _huge_ physique, White Diamond was extremely fast, and the fusion had trouble keeping up. It was literally a life and death experience as White Diamond outright aimed for each of her gems, trying to shatter them in one go. The fusion didn't doubt that White Diamond would be able to shatter her diamonds as well.

Meanwhile, Peridot simply stood to the side, watching the ongoing battle in silent wonder. She couldn't even keep up with the swift movements, and had to stand several hundreds of meters back in order to not get stepped on by accident. She stood by Lion, who was huffing terribly, determined to redirect any stray rocks that may have hit them. It was the least she could do after all Lion had done for her. They swapped blows with incredible power behind each other, even simply grazing sent shockwaves through the air and the recipient a few meters back.

Peridot tried to look for an opening, she really did, but she figured that trying to help would have the opposite effect and would instead distract the fusion. Her previous thoughts crept back on her. After coming all this way, Peridot was still useless. She wasn't oblivious to the fact that Lion had been the one to save the fusion, and that she had really done nothing. She groaned and slumped on Lion, staring at the ground. Ground that was similar to the first time she took on a monster by herself. Sure, she had managed to defeat it, but…it was due to luck, not actual skill.

Not like the Crystal Gems.

Once, that name would have struck fear and righteous fury into her gem, but now she saw it as a star, so far up on a pedestal that she could barely see it. She acknowledged and appreciated the other gems' equal views of her and everyone else, but like a drop of poison, the thought kept coming back to her, unbidden. What use was she if all she did was puff up her chest in a false show of bravado, but didn't help her fellow gems? She was as good as defective. Even Lion was more useful, and powerful, than her, and he wasn't even a gem! He even went through all that trouble of making her feel better by taking her to the battle scene and fighting White Diamond, and though it kind of backfired, she felt a glow of warmth spreading through her.

A rush of affection flowed through her as she nuzzled the side of Lion's fur, a silent show of gratitude. Lion's sides heaved with exertion, his flanks wet with sweat. _Don't worry, Lion. I'll keep you safe_ , she thought to herself.

Suddenly, a _massive_ BOOM exploded in the air, and she snapped her head up to see a giant shadow falling on her.

It was the fusion.

Her panicked gaze sought the two, and tried to dodge them, but she was too big and falling too fast. It would be a few seconds until she landed on top of them. Peridot's eyes widened with fear and alarm, not for her, but for the pink mass of fluff behind her. She needed to get them both out of there.

Think, think, Peridot searched her surroundings and her mind for a way out of this disaster.

Useless.

She couldn't see any way out short of _pushing_ the incoming fusion out of the way, but that was impossible.

It was hopeless.

She was hopeless.

Useless.

But she couldn't get Lion caught in her self pity.

Lion lifted his head, saw the fusion falling from the sky. He put one heavy paw below him, the leg shaking with strain in supporting his weight. He lifted perhaps a few centimetres, but fell back down, the exertion clearly too much for him. He nudged Peridot's legs with his nose, as if to tell her to run, leave him behind and run. But she couldn't do that. Not after all he had done for her.

So she looked again, searched and searched for something, _anything_.

Over there!

The skeleton of a rusted car lay eroding in the sand not too far off. With a twist of superhuman telekinesis, Peridot _pulled_ with all her might and mind. It jerked towards her, then slowly picked up speed, accelerating across the sandy expanse, sometimes getting caught on small rocks jutting out of the sand, but sailing through the air towards her regardless. Peridot quickly flicked her eyes up to the fusion above her. It was much closer than she expected.

No time, _no time_!

The car only picked up more speed with her frantic thoughts. When it was close enough, Peridot jumped as high as she could, _just_ missing the rusted structure as it barrelled beneath Lion, burying into the sand. Raising her hands in clear exertion, Peridot heaved the frame up, with Lion lying on it.

She wouldn't be able to carry herself. It was a struggle just to keep Lion afloat. But, there was no time to think. Once again, Peridot built up pressure within her and _hurled_ it across the land. Once it was out of range, she let go and it skidded to a stop after a few bounces. Lion didn't open his eyes through it all, his breathing still coming out in uneven bursts.

Peridot looked up. The fusion was nearly on top of her. It would be a few seconds now. She tried to smile at the fusion, but she suspected it came off as more of a grimace. There were tears in her eyes, she really would miss the Crystal Gems. Especially Steven, the first to accept her in the world, the first one willing to give her a chance.

And…Lapis.

Peridot absently wondered how she would take her… _shattering_. It would be a lie if Peridot didn't want her to cry or feel _some_ kind of pain.

And it would be a lie if Peridot said she didn't want to see her, one last time.

Ah well, this was the end.

Fusion.

She wished she could fuse. That time back on the barn, knowing that the world could end, and all life on it. Despite everything, Garnet had still made the time to _try_ it with her. Peridot remembered the discomfiture and the bafflement of fusion, the righteous scepticism of such an act. Then the longing to try it, to _know_ what was so great, what Garnet had spoken about with quiet love and wonder. The tin cans under her feet, the soft wind brushing comfortably against her skin, a soothing hum the only music to her dance. It was awkward, and unsuccessful, but she wanted to know.

Now she will never know.

She shut her eyes, not wanting to see her death. She could feel the fusion, right on top of her.

A glistening tear rolled off her cheek, but before it could land on the ground, a giant BOOM denoted where she was standing. Gigantic clouds of dust and sand blew up towards the sky at the impact, and made a thick, opaque haze.

It blotted out the sun. White Diamond could see nothing, but she was satisfied. The fusion was likely not fatally injured, but at least it took care of that pesky gem that had dared stop her attack.

There was no way such an _inferior_ gem could survive that.

 **A/N: Oh no! Poor Peridot. That part was kind of hard to write, but I don't think it was too bad, was it? I admit it is very dramatic and a little exaggerated, but I wanted to really delve into her emotions. Almost an entire chapter dedicated to Peridot and her emotions. Also, I really think that Lion is incredibly powerful. He can teleport, _and_ he's dead. He doesn't even have a gem. So, by extension, Steven is probably also incredibly powerful. I mean, he has the potential to create an army of the undead! Plus, let's not forget his affinity with life, like that watermelon Steven episode. His power may be unpredictable, but you can't deny it's powerful. Anyway, thanks for reading!**


	7. True Power

First, the fusion's arms and legs had landed, in an attempt to stop herself from crushing the gem standing underneath. This had sent the giant plumes of sand and dust into the air. But the force of her fall was too great, and her arms and legs couldn't support her weight and momentum. She fell down, collapsing onto the awaiting gem.

While the diamonds were apathetic to this development, the rest of the fusion was overcome with grief. Especially Steven and Amethyst, who had never experienced loss like in the war, the reason being they hadn't existed then. And while Pearl and Garnet were there in the war, and had grown somewhat accustomed to the loss and sacrifices that were inevitable in such circumstances, the loss of a comrade would always send a stab of pain through their gems. Time and numbers wouldn't dull the ache they would feel.

So, when the fusion landed, completely expecting to crush the fellow gem underneath her, surprise would have been an understatement to describe her emotion when a _flash of light_ , for the _third time in two days_ , filled the dust choked air.

She was totally, completely, utterly flabbergasted.

One more gem joined her forehead where Pearl's pearl lay. One more voice joined their shared mind space. Power and confidence thrummed through her being.

Peridot's natural affinity suddenly got a very large power boost.

* * *

Peridot was expecting the worst. She thought she would be shattered, crushed under the weight of the fusion. Her soul clinging to the shards of her gem, unable to form and unable to think.

Just before she got hit, she was bracing for impact, knowing that the sensation would be nothing like what she had ever felt before.

That much she was certain of.

However, this was not what she was expecting at all.

When a gem was being shattered, was it normal to feel your body _stretch_ and your mind expand, and a giant well of power surge up within you? Was it normal to feel several presences surrounding and _meld_ into one? Was it normal to open your eyes and _see_?

No, she thought not. Either shattering was _nothing at all_ like she had expected, or this wasn't shattering.

Peridot sincerely hoped it was the latter.

She became aware of a cacophony of voices, but when she tried to reach up and cover her ears, she realised they were actually… in her… _mind_.

It was official. Peridot had officially shattered and gone insane.

' _Peridot! You're alive! And you're fused with us! Man, I really thought you were gone, don't scare us like that Peridot!_ ' said a voice that distinctly sounded like Steven.

Great, now she could hear Steven too. At least she wouldn't be lonely in... death? The afterlife?

' _Nooo, you're not dead Peridot, you've just fused with us!_ ' It looked like her subconscious, which strangely sounded like Steven, was trying to make her predicament less hopeless, by _lying_.

A jaded sigh filled her mind. ' _This is becoming tiresome. Peridot, snap out of it. If you gems haven't noticed, White Diamond won't be blinded for long. We need to think of a strategy._ ' Yellow Diamond's voice was naturally commanding, even if her tone was disinterested and indifferent. Curiously, Peridot perked up at Yellow Diamond's voice.

Her thoughts were revealed when she said, ' _Whoa, there's no way I'd have Yellow Diamond in my subconscious, this_ must _be real. I'm really… truly… still alive? And I'm fused?! So that really was you, Steven? And…Yellow Diamond?! Hold up, why are_ Blue and Yellow Diamond _fused with us in the first place?_ '

' _For the record, you joined_ after _us. But that's besides the point. We are fused because... because Rose Quartz was… sh-she was…_ ' Blue Diamond's voice reduced in conviction and came to a shaky halt. Peridot was impatient.

' _Because_ what _? What did Rose Quartz do? Come ooon, someone tell me already!_ '

' _Because Rose Quartz was Pink Diamond!_ ' Yellow Diamond snapped, before continuing in a much more hushed and gentle tone, ' _Blue, don't beat yourself up. Don't feel guilty that Pink decided to give up her identity and rebel against us as an amethyst. It wasn't your fault._ '

' _But Yellow, it_ is _my fault. She didn't come to us with her problems. She clearly didn't think we would have listened. Maybe she was right. No, she_ was _right. I remember now, she mentioned it, but we were too harsh, too quick to shut her down. To the point that she thought it was best to pretend to be_ shattered _than talk to us. Oh Yellow, we are_ horrible _leaders. We couldn't see when our own little gem was suffering. Why wouldn't she talk to us?_ ' Blue Diamond's regret seeped into the minds of the other gems, the effect especially powerful now that they were fused. However, it seemed to calm and abate after a moment, likely due to Blue Diamond's realisation of her power usage.

' _I think I can answer that,_ ' said Pearl, her voice a thoughtful murmur, ' _While I was not privy to_ all _of Rose's reasons and thoughts, I think she felt that turning against you as Pink Diamond was too much of a betrayal. She wanted to leave a satisfactory image of herself, she didn't want to soil your perspective of her. Despite everything, she_ did _care about you. It made rebelling all the more difficult, but she would not let go of her tenderness for you. Also, she used to be quite childish in her earlier millennia, she may have wanted a blank slate after that, and restart her reputation as a mature and reliable rebel. I…really can't believe I'm saying this, but like Yellow Diamond said, don't blame yourself. Rose always did what she wanted to. She may have taken others' words into consideration, but ultimately, she went after her own goals. It wasn't your fault, Blue Diamond._ '

' _Thank you, Pink's Pearl, you certainly have a refreshing outlook my own pearl lacks. I can see how Pink became so attached._ ' Blue Diamond had calmed down considerably.

' _You're welcome, but I'm no one's pearl. I only belong to myself. My ownership ended when Pink Diamond decided to become Rose Quartz._ '

' _Very well, Pearl._ '

There was silence; a peaceful, companionable silence found when one had found common ground, a rare reprieve in such an unbalanced fusion, with such different views and opinions. But this was interrupted by a shocked Peridot.

' _Oh. My. Stars. Rose Quartz, the fearsome leader of the rebels…was actually…_ Pink Diamond _?! How is this possible?! WHY IS NO ONE SURPRISED?! BECAUSE I AM. I AM ABSOLUTELY SHOCKED._ ' The rest of the fusion sighed wearily.

' _We don't have much time. White Diamond is going to realise that we're still alive,_ ' said Sapphire, her voice tinged with agitation.

 _'Really, I'm more surprised this cloud of dust and sand hadn't blown away during our conversation._ ' said Ruby, ' _Man, that would be awkward. White Diamond just staring at us while we were having this internal discussion._ '

The fusion looked around and noticed a twinkle of light in the corner of her eye.

She then promptly jumped five meters in the air when she realised it was a pair of very cold, harsh eyes.

White Diamond had been staring at her the entire time.

' _Damn it Ruby, you jinxed it!_ ' remarked Amethyst.

Once again, the fusion was caught in the snares of her enemy's eyes. She couldn't move.

The dust had settled somewhat, so that there was less thick layering at the top closer to the gems' eyes. This had permitted a certain level of visibility to the two, but completely obscured the lower section of each other. Now, enough had settled so that the lower sections were at least translucent. This allowed the fusion to see a very familiar, very dangerous light emanating from White Diamond's arm.

This time there was no Peridot to help since she was fused with the others. Lion couldn't either as he was far too exhausted. And unless Lapis suddenly came flying in out of nowhere, they were doomed.

There was no confounding variable this time.

Peridot had calmed down enough to respond to her surroundings.

' _But seriously guys, this is so cool! I can't believe I'm fused, I never thought it was even possible for me to fuse! There was_ so much _I couldn't do already and I thought this would be another one of those. Well, I'm really glad I got to experience this. It certainly is…an experience. I wonder if I can summon my own weapon. What would it be? Am I more powerful now that we've fu- wait. What. Is._ That _? Why is White Diamond pointing a shining arm at us?!_ '

' _I was wondering when you would notice. We really should increase the amount of nutrients newer gems receive, they keep deteriorating in quality._ ' Yellow Diamond's unimpressed tone drew an indignant huff from the green gem, ' _White Diamond's power is absolute. Blue's power and my power is nothing in comparison. There is one downside to her power; the amount of time it takes to 'charge', but her results are terrifyingly substantial. Due to the drawback, she rarely uses her power, but that makes her no less a formidable opponent. She has the power to shatter gems at will, as you likely experienced during the war. That is why we were surprised to learn that there were gems that were still alive and fighting. But now that we know Rose Quartz was in fact Pink Diamond, it certainly clears up much confusion._ '

' _Wait, but the remaining gems on earth that were hit by your attack, they weren't shattered…they were corrupted,_ ' said Pearl.

' _Corrupted? I don't think I know what you mean._ ' said Yellow Diamond.

' _It's like their mind is gone._ ' said Sapphire, sadness and loss lacing her voice, ' _They are a shell of their former selves. They can't revert to their original character, and even Steven's healing spit won't fix them. Or rather, it works a little for a while, but they go back to how they were. We lost many good friends in an instant that day. They weren't even shattered, just staying in that one state for so many millennia. We had to round them up and bubble them to keep the world and themselves safe._ '

' _Yeah, and when Jasper fused with one of them, she started to become one of them,_ ' said Amethyst, her voice uncharacteristically somber, ' _There was this gross…thing that grew from her arm. It was like a virus and it was taking over her body. Steven tried to heal her but she wouldn't listen. Then it was too late. She had lost her mind. She became corrupted. Peridot had to pop her with her powers and bubble her._ '

Yellow Diamond hummed thoughtfully, ' _Perhaps they became corrupted because it was a culmination of our powers. Truthfully, I have never heard of such a thing. Corruption. Sounds dreadful._ '

' _Wait! If you were the ones who made them like that, then you must be able to fix them! When this is all over, you_ have _to try and heal them,_ ' pleaded Steven hopefully.

' _Perhaps. We shall certainly attempt it. I am curious as to the effects of this corruption you speak of. I promise I will look into it, if we survive. But, hold on, how_ did _you defeat Jasper? Even in corrupted form, she must have been a formidable opponent. She was a perfect amethyst, made for war. She should have been incredibly difficult to defeat._ ' said Yellow Diamond.

' _That was all me,_ ' replied Peridot, her voice dripping with pride, ' _You see, we were at the Beta kindergarten when we found Jasper. She had caged up all the corrupted gems in dug up exit holes; it was horrible. Amethyst took her on and lost badly, but then she fused with Steven to form Smoky Quartz and totally obliterated her. But then Jasper decided to fuse with a corrupted gem, which I think passed the corruption onto her and they unfused. Steven tried to heal her, but she wouldn't listen and she turned full on corrupted. Her last words were about her diamond, which, wow, was Steven all along. Oh, the irony. My metal powers saved us in the nick of time. I managed to propel a steel bar straight through her body._ '

' _Metal powers…?_ ' asked Yellow Diamond, confused.

' _I know, right? Isn't it amazing? I can control metal at will, quite easily I might add. That's how I saved Lion back then._ ' It was clear Peridot was preening at the attention, but she snapped out of it when an idea came to mind, ' _Oh! Just because we can't move, doesn't mean we can't use our powers! What if the diamonds combined their powers to defeat White Diamond?_ '

There was a moment of silence. Then, as if a chord had been cut, the gems simultaneously started admonishing themselves for not thinking of this earlier. Well everyone except for Steven and Ruby.

' _That's a great idea Peridot!_ ' Steven said, his voice almost annoyingly optimistic.

' _Yeah, I would have never thought of that!_ ' said Ruby, happily oblivious.

The diamonds started building up their power. Because she was a fusion, the time needed was much shorter, and she managed to direct her green power to White Diamond.

Once again, the green crackle of lightning sped towards the white being in an almost elegant dance. White Diamond saw it coming, she stared at it as it flickered towards at her at an impossible to dodge speed. And it was.

White Diamond was hit directly, the light pushing her back. She squinted, and her spell broke.

The fusion could move again.

Suddenly, she felt a huge thrum of power from deep inside her. She could _feel_ things far below her. Then a thought came to mind. Could it… could it be _metal_?

She experimentally raised her arm and _pulled_ with all her strength. A resonant groan filled the air before a metal bar _ripped_ out of the ground and flew high up into the sky, winking out of the atmosphere within seconds. White Diamond seemed to be as shocked as the fusion.

'Awesome…'

* * *

 **A/N:** **The reason I have a charging period for white's power is because it is seriously OP. I mean think of how Blue Diamond was able to overcome everyone with her emotions. That was only their emotions, and while White Diamond's powers, in this fan fiction, aren't exactly to do with shattering, it would be way too unfair if White Diamond completely obliterated them at the get-go. Besides, with great powers, come great drawbacks as well.**

 **I actually love writing Peridot's parts; she's such a funny character and really helps lighten the mood. Are you happy she's alive and well, as well as a kickass addition to the fusion? I figured that since the newer gems received less nutrients, they were lacking somewhat in power in comparison to other, older gems. So, once she fused with the other gems, the amount of nutrients were no longer a problem and she had more power. Maybe that is why fusions are so powerful, the nutrients they have are used more efficiently due to the larger pool of nutrients available.**

 **Well, this wasn't too much of a cliffhanger. And, I ended it on a hopeful note. Next chapter will be the last chapter, I think. As always, thanks for reading!**


	8. Outer Space

**A/N: This will be the last chapter. It will be quite heavy, not like the previous chapters, and serious, despite the uplifting ending of the last chapter. Hmm, maybe I should leave you guys to read and judge. Also, I updated a week early because I'm going away for a month and I didn't want to leave you guys waiting until then. Consider this an early Christmas present if you want (Merry -early- Christmas everyone!). Continuing on~**

White Diamond's grim expression did not change. A glimmer of surprise had sparked in her eyes, but it was already gone. Nevertheless, the fusion sprung forth in an attempt to catch her off guard.

Her fist flew towards White Diamond's face, faster than the speed of sound, and a resounding boom echoed through the empty desert. White Diamond, however, dodged it by leaping back, putting some distance between them. The fusion in turn opened her mouth and blasted a stream of pale blue fire at White Diamond, turning the surrounding sand into glass and leaving White Diamond to stand alone in a glossy crater.

When the sand settled down, the fusion was surprised to see an expression other than an artificial smile or a furious frown. It almost seemed like…fear. It was wiped away in an instant but not before the fusion was able to glimpse the alarm on her face.

What had caused it?

The only thing that had changed was Peridot's new and improved metal powers, but that was earlier. She was sure she would have seen alarm on her face before.

Unless…the fire?

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously and she deftly jumped in again and blew another stream of the hottest flame she could create right onto White Diamond. The fire was hotter than the core of any planet.

She leaped back out to observe the effects of her attack from a safe distance. White Diamond was stooping low on the shiny surface of the glass. Her head lifted and the fusion smothered a gasp.

Her features seemed to grow hazy, and smoke billowed from her visage. It soon disappeared, but the image brought a memory to mind.

Diamonds are simply carbon atoms with more bonds connecting them together to make them stronger. Diamonds may be one of the hardest substances on earth, but it doesn't mean they are indestructible. Really, a popular misconceiver is that they are almost impossible to break, and while that may be true to an extent, it is not the reason for their shatterproof reputation. They are considered hard in that they are notoriously difficult to scratch and cut into precisely. If hit with a hammer with a large enough force, they will shatter.

However, the fusion couldn't see how she could possibly hit White Diamond on the forehead with enough force to break it. Another method would be to drop her from a high enough place and let gravity do the rest, as was how Amethyst cracked her gem previously, but she couldn't imagine dropping White Diamond from a high enough place, and she feared it would be more hazardous for the earth. Not to mention, White Diamond's diamond may actually be harder than diamonds found on earth.

Half the fusion's mind was on the battle as she contemplated what to do. White Diamond appeared to be a little more inclined to stay back, seemingly not noticing the fusion's distracted state, for which the fusion was thankful.

Her mind, or Sapphire's future vision, ran through several scenarios, deftly plunging down various pools of possibilities. Turning up nothing, the fusion gritted her teeth and went after White Diamond. They were exchanging blows in quick succession, and the fusion fought to take control.

They were just _barely_ evenly matched.

A glancing blow caught the fusion's shoulder, and she was sent hurtling several meters back.

Faintly, she could feel a flicker behind her, resonating with her power. A new pool glimmered into view within Sapphire's future vision, and the fusion lit up with determination, a plan forming in her mind.

It was a narrow chance, but there was a way to win.

The fusion acted more winded than she was, and was careful to hide her slight smile of triumph as White Diamond lunged towards her. She kept leaping back, as if she was running, and the smile on White Diamond's face told her she suspected nothing. The presence became closer, and the flicker grew in strength.

When the fusion deemed she was close enough, she vaulted back with a handspring, her hand momentarily connecting with the ground. It was enough to confirm the reserves buried deep underground and to tug them closer to the surface. Her trap set, the fusion carefully manoeuvred to get White Diamond to the right spot.

And…there!

A well placed blow towards White Diamond's arms shielding her chest pushed her several meters back, right on top of an awaiting cage of metal at the fusion's disposal.

Snatching up the opportunity, the fusion snapped her arms up, and before White Diamond could move, they both shot up into the sky.

Up and up they went, air tearing at their bodies. The fusion created a pink barrier in the shape of a rocket's noose cone to improve the aerodynamics as well as to lessen the wind whipping their bodies at such a speed.

The fusion could feel White Diamond straining against the metal, and it took all of her concentration and strength to keep them both escalating. Thankfully, she could feel the shackles of the Earth's gravity diminishing, lightening the load she needed to carry. She didn't quite know when they were finally out of the Earth's atmosphere, but she realised after a little while that they met no resistance as they were propelled further into space.

It was cold in space.

But it was strange because she could feel the burning heat of the sun scorching her side.

As they hurtled through space, the fusion couldn't help but admire the melancholic beauty the billions, trillions of stars radiated. The twinkling pinpoints of light sparkled in their solitary positions, so far removed from the rest of the universe. The deep vastness of space stretched on for as far as the eye could see, barely an object breaking her view.

But…it was lonely.

Stars remained in their locations for billions of years, burning brightly, but to what end? They burned alone. If anything came close, it would burn that up too, perhaps trying to include those objects in its empty life, its possessive gravity resolved to never let go. But it would burn in its unending glory, and the star would once again live on alone.

Nothing to stop it, nothing that can come close. Floating in a vacuum for billions of years.

Alone.

The fusion looked at the star inside its metal cage, silently screaming to be released. Profound sadness overtook the fusion.

She carefully peeled back the bars and watched wearily from a distance. They were both still gliding through space at the same speed. White Diamond, her hand glowing white, blasted her power in the opposite direction, in an effort to stop her advancement to the sun.

It barely worked.

She seemed to realise the danger she was in, and her face cracked into one of fear and rage. _Stop me!_ , her lips seemed to shape, _Save me!_

It was time to end this, however. The fusion could feel the exposed skin on her face burning, the heat from the sun increasing as she drew closer. Earth couldn't even be seen anymore behind her. All she could see was White Diamond screaming and screaming, her eyes blown wide with fear and her spiky head of diamond sparkling blindingly this close to the sun.

The heat continued to rise, and it felt like she was burning alive, like her body was melting off her gem, and all she could see was the blazing sun searing her without mercy. The relentless, sweltering heat told her she was getting close. Just a little longer now. Her steel bars had already turned liquid a while ago, nothing but a glowing piece of liquid dull in comparison to the dazzling radiance of the sun.

She was waiting to feel the crushing weight of the sun.

Slowly, she could feel the dragging weight before her, her gradually increasing speed. White Diamond seemed to realise it at the same time as well. She screamed and wailed at the top of her lungs, but the fusion couldn't hear it. She looped the bands of hot white metal around her wrists and _pulled_ as had as she could. Slowly but surely, she was decelerating.

Eventually she came to a complete stop, her powers balancing the gravitational force of the sun, but White Diamond continued falling. Her face was screaming at her, _begging_ her to take her back. The fusion stared on with a stoic face.

Inside her mind was a different matter.

' _We have to save her, come on guys!_ ' Steven roared at the other gems he was fused with.

' _Steven, you know we can't. Once we save her, there's no going back. We will have lost our element of surprise, and she will annihilate us once she's safe. Then she'll destroy earth and everything you care about. Everything you've been working towards, everything you've achieved,_ your future _will shatter. I'm sorry Steven. But she is the one gem we cannot change._ ' Blue Diamond's voice was placating, but sad, so infinitely sad, a leaden heaviness weighing it down, and she suddenly sounded so ancient.

Steven found that he could say nothing to that. He watched silently through the eyes of their shared body as White Diamond faded into a spec in comparison with the brilliance of the sun.

And then she was gone.

It was all over, now.

The fusion stayed there a moment, whether in relief or grief, one could not tell. But when she turned away to start her journey back to earth, one could not deny the lighter expression on her face.

Maybe things were starting to look up.

The rest of the journey back home went without incident.

The fusion could worry about the future tomorrow. For now, she would savour the peace.

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 **A/N: And that's the end. Thank you to all those who read my fan fiction, your support was invaluable and motivated me to write. Special thanks to** **Steampunk Wilson for reviewing my fan fiction every chapter. Thank you to my friend polkadot16 for helping me develop this fan fiction, and listening to my rants and rambling about how I may progress my story. If anyone has any requests or ideas for me to write, feel free to leave reviews and I may write another fan fiction if I'm feeling inspired :).**


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